Pineappleweed

The fretful, gassy child who cannot settle, where chamomile would be chosen but pineappleweed is what grows in the yard

Tension headache that comes with a knotted stomach in an anxious adult, taken as a hot tea

Camping or trailside use: a fresh-crushed handful rubbed on the skin to deter mosquitoes, or a quick tea for a queasy stomach

Overview. Pineappleweed is a low, ferny annual of trodden ground, driveways and path edges, with cone-shaped yellow-green flower heads that lack the white ray florets of German chamomile and release a sweet pineapple scent when crushed. Native to northeast Asia and northwestern North America, it has spread across the temperate world. The flowering tops are used, fresh or dried. It is the people's chamomile of the northern countryside, used for the same run of digestive, nervous and feverish complaints, and Native communities of the Pacific Northwest used it for stomach upset, colds and as an insect repellent.

Clinical Notes. Treat pineappleweed as a milder, more aromatic chamomile. The tea is pleasant, fruity and slightly bitter, which children take readily, and it does the same work: settling a gassy, colicky belly, easing the cramping of a period, quieting a wound-up nervous system before sleep, and taken hot, opening the pores at the start of a cold.